Sam Remfry

.@RhonddaBryant, let's take those four points in order. "We are not easing sanctions on Russia." The trade licence issued by the Department for Business and Trade is of indefinite duration and allows the UK to import Russian crude oil refined in third countries such as India and Turkey. Indefinite duration isn't a tightening of sanctions. It's an open-ended waiver. You stood up in Parliament and apologised to MPs for the government's clumsy handling of the issue. You don't apologise for clumsiness when nothing has happened. "New sanctions take effect on Russian oil products processed in third countries." In October last year your government announced it would ban imports of oil products refined in third countries from Russian-origin crude, stating explicitly that the purpose was to further restrict the flow of funds to the Kremlin. Today it has issued a licence doing the opposite. A sanction announced in October and reversed in May is not a new sanction. It's another broken promise. "We are introducing this in a phased way to mitigate risks." In March, Ed Miliband said explicitly the UK government would not copy America's decision to ease sanctions on Russian oil, stating it was very important to continue showing solidarity with the Ukrainian people. Ukraine's own head of sanctions policy said his country felt let down. Emily Thornberry, Labour chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, said Britain had led the fight against Russia and people feel very let down. Phasing is not a defence when the direction reverses a specific public commitment made two months ago by your own Energy Secretary. "The licences are temporary." The oil licence is described by the Department for Business and Trade as being of indefinite duration. Indefinite and temporary are not synonyms. Words have meanings, and the public can read. And there's a question that sits beneath all four of these points. Yesterday Labour MPs voted against new UK oil and gas licences. Britain is now buying Russian oil instead of drilling its own. A government that banned domestic energy production, broke its own sanctions pledge, misled Parliament about what it had done, and then called it a phased approach, hasn't protected the national interest. It has demonstrated, in a single day, exactly why it arrived at this position in the first place. Putin is watching. He knows a desperate government when he sees one.

@OrMakeOne Tremendous work, it looks like it could go to the moon and back.

@SamRemfry Thanks. Not quite finished yet, and needs some test mileage to verify everything's working as it should be, but looking forward to actually getting out properly this summer. It's a rebuild of the one in my header image.

WANDERER LIVES! Emotional day - when the original machine now reborn into this one suffered a catastrophic failure at the end of last summer, it was as if I'd had my wings clipped. Now drinking cider and listening to - fittingly enough - Mahler's "Resurrection" symphony.

After 18 months of “standing up to Putin” the Labour govt quietly issued a licence allowing imports of Russian oil refined in third countries. Yesterday Labour MPs voted AGAINST UK oil and gas licences. We are now importing from Russia instead of drilling in the North Sea. Insane.

TfL route 355 bus driver ignored my request for the ramp to let me alight, and pulled away with me still onboard. Another infuriating example of insulting negligence and incompetence from a @TfL bus driver.

@London_W4 This is one of my favourite photographs.

After a most pleasant day in London where I actually achieved the jobs I’d planned, it’s time for bed and tonight I’ll leave you with this photo I took some time ago on Primrose Hill. One of my favourite places in London. Walking here one night and I just loved the simplicity of the scene. A lamppost and a bench. That’s it. Unedited and taken on a borrowed Leica compact camera which produced the gorgeous green tones. Nighty night boys and girls. Sweet dreams

Discussing International Law, the Law of Armed Conflict and the deployment of lawfare against liberal democracies with Ben Chertoff on the Honest Take, for @HonestReporting.

@HausdorffMedia @HonestReporting This is so disapointingly true, for the sake of some bizarre institutionalised prejudice, the ICJ and the ICC are set on destroying the credibility of international law.

@AndyBurnhamGM .@AndyBurnhamGM these bus stops are not working for blind people. Blind people want to travel by bus. Will you change this please to ensure the bus pulls up to the pavement so no pedestrian has to cross a cycle lane to board and alight a bus…x.com/nfbuk/status/1…

Life has just got a whole lot more difficult for a pedestrians, bus users and disabled people. Work on a new cycleway between Aldgate and Blackfriars is to go ahead after it was paused due to concerns about floating bus stops. bbc.co.uk/news/articles/…

@BartGonnissen 👍It's gone now.

Guys, I have reached peak celebrity status. Someone is mimicking my account. Please be aware and if you feel like it.. report plse.

@MPIainDS @dailytelegraph Who would do such a thing as that? someone should inform our National Security Adviser! Ahh wait..

Top civil servant held nuclear talks with ‘front’ for Chinese spy agency. The Foreign Office’s defence chief secretly discussed Britain’s nuclear deterrent with a think tank that has ties to China’s spy agency, the @dailytelegraph can reveal. telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/05/1…

@AllisonPearson NHS waiting lists are down because the number of patients being kicked off of them without being treated is up by about 100k; not sure that's anything to be proud of.

@JackBMontgomery @AllisonPearson Yes, this is exactly what is happening. I speak from personal experience.

Fake News 👇

@JohnSlinger @darrenpjones Another layer of useless bureaucracy.

Great from @darrenpjones on accelerating & improving the ability of government departments to deliver, building on his speech about ‘moving fast & fixing things’ x.com/darrenpjones/s… I wrote in Feb about the need for a ‘action this day’ approach 👇🏻 labourlist.org/2026/02/a-day-…

@darrenpjones I agree the civil service is in dire need of reform, but I don't believe you are the people to deliver it.

Each department in government will now have its own delivery unit, led by a senior civil servant. And every Secretary of State and Minister of State will be given a new “delivery advisor” in their private office to support this work. These new delivery functions will be accountable to both their Secretary of State and to my team. This builds on my recent work setting up the new joint No10 and Cabinet Office Delivery Unit. Read more: civilserviceworld.com/professions/ar…

@zatzi Starmer Hermer, Powell, Sands.. Who knows?

What are Labour hiding?

As his supporters keep telling us, the Prime Minister is getting on with business as usual.

@joshxhowie Of course..

This is a mistranslation. When he says “Dirty Jews” and “Behead the Jews” what he really means is ‘Islam is the religion is peace.’

James Murray was the architect and chief defender of the disastrous family farm tax, refusing every compromise offered by the NFU and farming unions while British farms were forced to plan for closure. Now he is in charge of the NHS.